Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Want To Learn How To Make Comics? Here's a Self-Learning Path

A question came up on an online forum, asking how can one begin to learn how to make comics, given very little knowledge in both writing and art. I decided to write my answer as a blog post.

I've been drawing comics on and off for more than 20 years, but I've been drawing far longer than that. I'm primarily self-taught, and had regarded drawing purely as a hobby. As far as the writing goes, I started writing professionally by working in corporate public relations.

Even though I've been writing and drawing for a very long time, I was only able to make my first comic book as both writer and artist at 31 years old. Now that I've gained success as a comics creator, I would sometimes wonder how I should have done things differently.

Is there a method, a "curriculum," that one could follow to learn how to make comics?

Sure, there are tons of books out there about how to make comics, and they cover a lot of topics. However, a lot of them don't look at progression, or the step-by-step way of learning for someone who's starting from scratch.

So I tried to think of something on my own.

With all the things I know now, this is what I would tell my younger self. These are the subjects to learn over six year-period--the first four will be mostly about education, the next two will be mostly about application. Though I don't give much detail, it gives specific areas of focus. For most of these subjects, there are a lot of free and for-pay books and online tutorials available.

For Writing: Journaling
For Marketing: Establish relationships online and offlineAt the end of Year One, you should be able to draw a variety of forms and materials with confidence, as well as render them in inks.

Being able to do this quickly and confidently sets you up for greatness. :-)

Now, you might ask, "Isn't one year too long?" It's only as long or as short as how much work and practice you put into it. This is foundational--your ability to draw and ink simple and complex forms with speed and confidence will make the rest of the journey easier. Plus, form drawing is crucial in learning to draw everything else.

A very quick drawing. By combining and contouring basic forms, you can already draw a lot.

You've spent a year drawing all sorts of forms in different configurations, so you're now ready to tackle placing those forms in perspective. Not only that, you'll also be moving towards drawing locations in perspective--interiors, exteriors, and landscapes. You'll also dig into the topic of artistic composition, or how to arrange elements that results in an aesthetically pleasing drawing.

At the end of Year Two, you should be able to draw a variety of locations confidently using different perspective views. You should also be able to create artwork/comics that follow sound composition principles.

At the end of Year Four, you should be able to create unique and expressive characters that follow human proportions. You should also have gained working knowledge of online marketing principles and techniques, as well as how to create artwork for print and online.

Years Five through Six

Consolidation / Styling / Fine-Tuning of Drawing Knowledge through single plates and short comics (three to six finished plates a month)

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About Me

I've had a long and fruitful career in graphic design, article writing, and magazine art direction, and I've dabbled in theatre acting, playwriting, and teaching in university. But Fate led me to making comics, where I've found unexpected and flattering success.

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Carver Quotes

"It's a fact of life. When aging folks try to be youthful, others will say, 'You're too old for that! Act your age!' But when the aging folks lament growing old, others will say, 'Of course not! You're still young!' We therefore conclude: When you get old, people will treat you like a teenager." - 1/30/2011

"When you're not sure what to do with your life, answer the first question: what is the Big Dream? The answer may be hard to find, but it's just there, in your soul, waiting for you." - 3/29/2011

"There comes a point in life when you just can't do all you want to do. So, with whatever you are able to do, make it your masterpiece." - 12/08/2011

"Filipino comics is slowly becoming popular again, and we only want to give our readers the good stuff. The best stuff. Not because what we do is cool, but because what we do is meaningful." - 02/06/2012

"The best part about having artist friends is that they understand your neurosis." - 10/22/2012

"One trick to becoming a positive thinker is to believe you're the star of your own sitcom. Expect each episode to more often end in a burst of laughter and applause." - 1/29/2013